Monday, Jul. 14, 2008

Oakdale residents say developments incomplete

OAKDALE -- When Joe Melendrez bought his home in Bridle Ridge, a master-planned community on Oakdale's southwest edge, the promise of a park and friendly neighbors were crucial.

"I assumed I'd look out the window to a park and could cross the street to visit my neighbors," he said. "I'm still waiting for both."

Rather than a lush park, with kids playing and families enjoying picnics, Melendrez looks out over a field of knee-high dead weeds and construction debris.

Instead of sitting on his porch and waving to neighbors as they pass, he is forced inside to avoid being pelted by dirt and pebbles carried by hot afternoon winds.

"Promises, promises, promises" Melendrez said. "The only activity around here is when they dump more concrete in the field that was supposed to be a park."

It wasn't wishful thinking that led Melendrez to believe he had found utopia. It was a guarantee from Pacific Union Homes, the master developer for the 508-acre Bridle Ridge project:

"Designed for upscale recreational living, Bridle Ridge offers a distinctly refined and quiet quality of life," Pacific Union continues to promise on its Web site for Bridle Ridge. "With parks, schools, and walking trails integrated right into the neighborhood, Bridle Ridge provides an atmosphere as elegant as it is relaxing."

Melendrez and others in Bridle Ridge question the elegance of tinder-dry weeds, dust storms, sidewalks overgrown with prickly starthistle and garbage piles.

Pacific Union didn't have an answer Friday, failing to return The Bee's request for comment. A company official Sunday declined to comment.

The chasm between what was promised and what has been delivered isn't unique to residents of Bridle Ridge. Many folks who bought in fledgling subdivisions the past two years face a similar scenario, the result of a housing collapse that pushed some builders into bankruptcy and persuaded others to bolt from the Northern San Joaquin Valley before they completed outlying houses.

Left in their wake are thousands of lots, wires and pipes jutting from the soil in anticipation of providing water and power to homes that might never be built.

What was an eyesore, said Bridle Ridge resident Ranjit Singh Ghuman, has become a fire hazard with the arrival of summer.

"Weeds up to here," said Ghuman, pointing to his waist. "All it takes is a spark and that field goes on fire. A little wind and it crosses the street to my house."

Ghuman, who lives at the corner of Criolla Court and Morgan Street, said it's impossible to use some sidewalks because they are laden with starthistle. The razor-sharp thorns cause dogs to yelp, kids to cry and adults to curse.

Adding to the frustration is the uncertainty of who's responsible. At least two builders in Bridle Ridge declared bankruptcy, city manager Steve Hallam said, and it is their responsibility to keep lots free of weeds and trash.

"Our fire marshal has been aggressive dealing with this," Hallam said. "He started on the east side, after prioritizing the risks. Now he's going to the west side.

"One of the issues is that bankruptcies are putting property in the hands of banks, so that's another piece we're dealing with."

The master plan was for 1,850 homes, with Pacific Union selling lots to more than a half-dozen builders. Early building went as planned, the project's interior is almost completely developed, but the collapse of the housing market left hundreds of vacant lots on the eastern and western edges.

It's a story as familiar to folks in Modesto, Merced and Patterson as it is to those in Oakdale.